For what it's worth, Autoconf does not assume that arithmetic expansion will be available. Instead, it emits the following shell code:
if ( eval 'test $(( 1 + 1 )) = 2' ) 2>/dev/null; then eval 'func_arith () { func_arith_result=$(( $* )) }' else func_arith () { func_arith_result=`expr "$@"` } fi 2017-12-17 23:55 GMT+01:00 Rodrigo Tobar <rto...@icrar.org>: > Dear all, > > During a recent package submission, we were highlighted that some lines in > our configure script didn't follow the correct syntax. The lines looked like > this: > > x=$(($y/10)) > > We were indicated at the time that this is because the statement does not > use Bourne shell syntax, which is absolutely true, and also that the manual > warns about this, which is true again. So far everything is clear. > > However, what confuses me is that even when the manual says that "you can > include an executable (Bourne) shell script configure in your package" [1], > the associated footnote says something slightly different: "The script > should only assume a POSIX-compliant /bin/sh" [2]. The footnote goes even > further, and links to the POSIX specification of the Shell Command Language > [3] (as published by The Open Group), which explicitly includes arithmetic > expressions like the one above in its syntax [4]. > > My question then is: what exact dialect should be considered? Given that the > statement above does not work in the Bourne shell, I conclude that the > Bourne shell is not POSIX-compliant. That in turn would make the manual > ambiguous as to the precise dialect that should be used by our configure > scripts, and either the shells used by R should be changed to be > POSIX-compliants, or the manual edited to be more precise regarding . > > Many thanks. > > Rodrigo > > [1] > https://cran.r-project.org/doc/manuals/r-release/R-exts.html#Configure-and-cleanup > [2] https://cran.r-project.org/doc/manuals/r-release/R-exts.html#FOOT25 > [3] http://pubs.opengroup.org/onlinepubs/9699919799/utilities/V3_chap02.html > [4] > http://pubs.opengroup.org/onlinepubs/9699919799/utilities/V3_chap02.html#tag_18_06_04 > > ______________________________________________ > R-devel@r-project.org mailing list > https://stat.ethz.ch/mailman/listinfo/r-devel -- Iñaki Úcar http://www.enchufa2.es @Enchufa2 ______________________________________________ R-devel@r-project.org mailing list https://stat.ethz.ch/mailman/listinfo/r-devel